Afternoon Light

Jane Connors, ‘Because She Was Here’ The 1954 Royal Tour

In this first episode of the second season of the Afternoon Light podcast, Robert Menzies Institute CEO Georgina Downer talks to Dr Jane Connors about the 1954 Royal Tour.In 1954 Queen Elizabeth II became the first reigning monarch to visit Australia. The Royal Tour was a fascinating cultural phenomenon, mesmerising the entire nation for over a month. It is estimated that three-quarters of Australia’s population came out to see their new Queen, escorted by her husband Prince Phillip. In many respects it was a coming-of-age moment for Australia, where we finally achieved the recognition that we felt we both needed and deserved. For Robert Menzies as Prime Minister it was easily one of his proudest moments.It is now difficult for us to imagine the emotional pull that the tour had over ordinary Australians. The moment was a unique snapshot in our history, revealing much about us as a people and our place in the world. Analysing it in retrospect helps to shed an important light on the trajectory of Australia’s story, how much we have changed in our outlook and identity, and yet this common thread of constitutional monarchy and respect for Her Majesty which retains some of its lustre 70 years down the track.Jane Connors is an ABC veteran of over 30 years and is an editorial advisor with the ABC. She has a PhD in Australian History and is the author of Royal Visits to Australia. She is a member of several advisory bodies including the Centre for Media History.

Scott Prasser ‘The Learning Leader’ and Nick Cater ‘Forgotten People to Quiet Australians’

In this sixth and final episode of the Afternoon Light Summer Series you will hear from Scott Prasser on ‘The Learning Leader’ and Nick Cater on ‘Forgotten People to Quiet Australians’.Dr Scott Prasser gives a detailed analysis of the qualities which underpinned Menzies’s leadership, drawing on his own expertise in public policy and the workings of government.Prasser is an expert on public policy and the author of Royal Commissions and Public Inquiries in Australia. He has worked in Federal and State governments in senior research and policy roles and was the inaugural Executive Director of the Public Policy Institute at the Australian Catholic University. He is the editor of the Australian Biographical Monographs series produced by Connor Court Publishing, and he wrote the monograph for Menzies titled Man or Myth (2020). In 1995 he co-edited a book of papers on Menzies titled The Menzies Era: A Reappraisal of Government, Politics and Policy.Nick Cater breaks down Menzies’s famous forgotten people broadcasts, arguing that they laid down a clear political vision which would underpin the values and governance of the Menzies era.Cater is the Executive Director of the Menzies Research Centre. Since arriving in Australia from Britain in 1988, Nick Cater has risen to become one of the nation's leading political commentators. His CV includes stints as deputy editor of The Sunday Telegraph in Sydney, editor of The Weekend Australian, and Hong Kong correspondent for News Corp. He remains a weekly columnist at The Australian and regularly on Sky News. His affection for his adopted country was explained in his acclaimed, bestselling book The Lucky Culture (2013). Under his stewardship since 2015, the MRC has grown steadily in output, size, subscriber base, and prominence.

Anne Henderson: ‘Preparation for War, the Trade Union Movement and Appeasement’ and Frank Bongiorno: ‘Curtin and Menzies’

In this fifth episode of the Afternoon Light Summer Series you will hear from Anne Henderson on ‘Preparation for War, the Trade Union Movement and Appeasement’ and Frank Bongiorno on ‘Curtin and Menzies’.Anne Henderson AM takes aim at writers who have criticised Menzies for being an ‘appeaser’ in the face of the rising threat of fascism in the late 1930s, contextualising his views so as to defeat historical anachronisms.Henderson is the Deputy Director of the Sydney Institute. She is a prolific and respected author, having published books on Enid Lyons, Joseph Lyons, Mary Mackillop, Patrick Glynn and more. In 2014 she published Menzies at War, a detailed account of Menzies’s years in the political wilderness between his two stints as prime minister, which was shortlisted for the Prime Minister’s Literary Award for History.Professor Frank Bongiorno AM looks at the relationship between Menzies and fellow wartime Prime Minister John Curtin, demonstrating Menzies’s ability to forge friendships across the political divide and highlighting how both men were the products of an Australian culture that encouraged a surprisingly high level of learning even among the working class.Bongiornois the Head of the School of History at the Australian National University. He is an Australian political, labour, and cultural historian, with a particular interest in the history of the Australian Labor Party, on which he has published widely. His books include The Eighties: The Decade That Transformed Australia (2015), The People's Party: Victorian Labor and the Radical Tradition 1875-1914 (1996), and The Lives of Australians: A History (2012). He was co-editor of Elections Matter: Ten Federal Elections that Shaped Australia (2018).

David Furse-Roberts ‘A Simple Presbyterian in Politics: Robert Menzies, Liberalism and Anti-Sectarianism’

In this fourth episode of the Afternoon Light Summer Series you will hear from Dr David Furse-Roberts on ‘A Simple Presbyterian in Politics: Robert Menzies, Liberalism and Anti-Sectarianism’.Dr David Furse-Roberts examines how Menzies’s profound but somewhat enigmatic religious beliefs shaped his political views, and also how, remarkably for the time, Menzies was whole-heartedly opposed to sectarian bitterness, even clashing with his family over the issue.Furse-Roberts is a Research Fellow at the Menzies Research Centre. He holds a PhD in history from the University of NSW and is the editor of Howard: The Art of Persuasion (2018) and Menzies: The Forgotten Speeches (2017). Since joining the MRC in 2016, he has written for Quadrant, Spectator Australia, and other publications on the history and contemporary relevance of liberalism in Australia. In 2021 he published God and Menzies: The Faith that Shaped a Prime Minister and his Nation.

Gregory Melleuish: ‘The Idea of Education According to the Young Menzies, 1916-1945’ and Judith Brett: ‘Menzies’s Debt to Deakinite Liberalism’

In this third episode of the Afternoon Light Summer Series you can hear Professor Gregory Melleuish on ‘The Idea of Education According to the Young Menzies, 1916-1945’ followed by Emeritus Professor Judith Brett on ‘Menzies's Debt to Deakinite Liberalism’.Professor Gregory Melleuish delivers a paper prepared with the help of Dr Stephen Chavura, which argues that Menzies saw the pivotal role of universities as the new ‘church’ which could promote higher principles and goals, overcoming the fundamental threat posed by materialism.Melleuish is a Professor in the School of Humanities and Social Inquiry at the University of Wollongong, where he teaches, among other things, Australian politics. He has written widely on Australian political thought, including Cultural Liberalism in Australia (1995) and Despotic State or Free Individual (2014), and is considered one of the leading experts on Australian liberalism and conservatism. He co-wrote The Forgotten Menzies (2021) with Steven Chavura and has also published peer-reviewed journal articles discussing MenziesJudith Brett examines the extent to which Menzies’s style of governance was inspired by Australian Prime Minister and Federation campaigner Alfred Deakin, who was an advocate of a ‘new liberalism’ based on a positive and socially ameliorative role for the state.Brett is an Emeritus Professor at La Trobe University, where she used to teach and research Australian Politics, Political Biography, and Political History. A former editor of Meanjin and columnist for The Age, she won the National Biography Award in 2018 for The Enigmatic Mr Deakin. She is the author of four Quarterly Essays: Relaxed and Comfortable, Exit Right, Fair Share and The Coal Curse. She has published widely on Menzies and the history of Australian liberalism, with her book Robert Menzies’ Forgotten People winning the Ernest Scott Prize (1992-1993), the Victorian Premier's Literary Award (1993) and the NSW Premier's Literary Award (1993).

Justice James Edelman: ‘Menzies and the Law’

In this second episode of the Afternoon Light Summer Series you can hear The Hon Justice James Edelman’s presentation on ‘Menzies and the Law’.Justice James Edelman examines Menzies’s brilliant legal career and relationship with the High Court, particularly his involvement in the Engineers Case and the overturning of legislation which attempted to ban the Communist PartyEdelman was appointed to the High Court of Australia in January 2017. Prior to that he was a judge of the Federal Court of Australia and a judge of the Supreme Court of Western Australia. He previously practised as a barrister at the chambers of Mr Malcolm McCusker QC in Western Australia from2001-2011 in the areas of criminal law and commercial law and at One Essex Court Chambers from 2008-2011 in commercial law. He was a Fellow of Keble College, Oxford from 2005, and Professor of the Law of Obligations at the University of Oxford from 2008 until 2011.

David Kemp ‘Menzies: Time for a Reappraisal?’ and Troy Bramston ‘Young Robert’

In this first episode of the Afternoon Light Summer Series you can hear The Hon Dr David Kemp’s presentation on ‘Menzies: Time for a Reappraisal?’, followed by Troy Bramston’s presentation on ‘Young Robert’.The Hon Dr David Kemp AC examines how the historiography surrounding Menzies has developed over the years, and argues that Menzies fought for a ‘politics of principle’ in which convictions would trump sectional and short term interests.Kemp is a former Federal Member and Minister in the Howard Government. Before entering Parliament he was Professor of Politics at Monash University, and after leaving Parliament Professor and Vice-Chancellor's Fellow at the University of Melbourne. He is the former Chairman of the Museum of Australian Democracy at Old Parliament House and of the Australian Heritage Council. He has published books on voting behaviour and political analysis, and is particularly known for his ground-breaking series on Australian Liberalism published by Melbourne University Press.Troy Bramston looks at how Menzies’s humble upbringing in the small Victorian wheat township of Jeparit and politically active family background defined his worldview.Bramston is a senior writer and columnist with The Australian. He has interviewed politicians, presidents, and prime ministers from multiple countries along with writers, historians, actors, filmmakers, and several notable pop-culture icons. He is an award-winning and best-selling author or editor of 10 books, including Robert Menzies: The Art of Politics (2019) and Paul Keating: The Big-Picture Leader (2016). He co-authored The Truth of the Palace Letters and The Dismissal (2020) with Paul Kelly. He is currently writing a biography of Bob Hawke.

Gideon Haigh: ‘The Brilliant Boy’ Remembering the Achievements of Dr H.V. Evatt

In this week’s episode of the Afternoon Light podcast, Robert Menzies Institute CEO Georgina Downer talks to author and journalist Gideon Haigh about Doc Evatt and Robert Menzies. Herbert Vere Evatt and Robert Gordon Menzies led parallel and overlapping lives. Both were: born in 1894, from modest backgrounds, had brilliant minds, able to receive educational opportunities thanks to winning academic prizes, presidents of university student councils, passionate about art and cricket, remarkably successful lawyers who shaped future jurisprudence, served as Attorney General, earned international repute, and led political causes which they firmly believed in. However, because Menzies bested Evatt at three elections whilst the Labor Party was torn apart by internal strife, these days Evatt is often remembered as little more than a ‘hapless and divisive opposition leader’ who enable an unprecedented political supremacy.

Barry Jones: ‘A Strong Acquaintance’ Personal Reflections on Menzies and the Menzies Era

In this week’s episode of Afternoon Light, Robert Menzies Institute CEO Georgina Downer talks to former Hawke Government Minister The Hon Barry Jones AC about his friend, Robert Gordon Menzies. Barry visited Menzies many time in his retirement after having sparked the interest of Dame Pattie for his appearances on the ‘Pick A Box’ gameshow. A strong supporter of the Labor Party who served that party in both State and Federal Parliaments, Jones disagrees with many of the decisions that Menzies made throughout his career, and his insights help to reveal some of Menzies’s limitations while also demonstrating his ability to earn the respect of his political opponents.

James Waghorne: ‘A Light on the Hill & A Place of Truth’ Menzies’s University Days

This week on the Afternoon Light podcast Robert Menzies Institute CEO Georgina Downer is joined by Dr James Waghorne to discuss the intricacies and eccentricities of the University of Melbourne at the turn of the century. James is a Senior Research Fellow at the Melbourne Centre for Higher Education and the University of Melbourne’s de facto historian. When Robert Menzies came to the University of Melbourne to study Law in 1913, it had only around 1000 students. Even that was a great increase from when it opened in the 1850s to teach the sons of pastoralists and to civilise what was a young and brooding Colony that had only just broken off from New South Wales. In his youth Menzies was already a towering and precocious figure. Though he was not a product of wealth, and attended as a non-resident member of Ormond College largely on the back of academic prizes he had won, Menzies became President of the SRC and the editor of the Melbourne University Magazine.These were Menzies’s formative days when he learned to debate, to write, to give speeches, and to negotiate with personalities and bureaucracies. There were setbacks, like failing Latin in his first year, or receiving backlash for supporting conscription in a war in which he himself had not enlisted. But overall there were tremendous successes that left Menzies self-confident and ready to take on the world. Menzies fell in love with the University of Melbourne; he tutored there, came back for debates in the 1920s, and even returned triumphantly as Chancellor in the late 1960s.